45 Years After Roe v. Wade: The Battle for Abortion Access Continues

45 years ago today, the U.S. Supreme Court issued the landmark decision protecting a women’s right to an abortion. The decision, known as Roe v. Wade, is still in effect, but the current events of today would lead anyone to think otherwise.

According to the ACLU the advocacy organization has repeatedly had to show up in court to put an end to Trump’s plans that would block several immigrant women from obtaining abortions due to the Office of Refugee Resettlement. The agency is responsible for unaccompanied immigrant minors and has adopted a “no-abortion” policy.

The policy requires any young woman who requests an abortion to first visit a “crisis pregnancy center,” which reportedly dissuades women from having abortions. The agency also prohibits the woman from going to an abortion clinic.

So far, the ACLU has appeared in court on behalf of Jane Doe, Jane Poe, Jane Roe, and Jane Moe in order for them to obtain the abortions they wanted. The organization has also asked for a federal court to allow it to bring the lawsuit in the name of all pregnant women in custody of the ORR in order to put a stop to its policy, which it deems as “unconstitutional.”

While the policy is geared toward immigrants who are in federal custody, the ACLU says the government is targeting those who are not immigrants.

“In the 45 years since the Supreme Court recognized the right to have an abortion, state and federal lawmakers have passed hundreds of restrictions eroding this right. In 2017 alone, 19 states adopted 63 new restrictions on abortion rights and access,” the article states.

“Apart from political appointees enacting blanket anti-abortion policies at federal agencies, and state legislatures passing restrictive laws, there is the Hyde Amendment, which Congress passed in 1976 to prohibit Medicaid from paying for abortion,” the ACLU continues. “For a low-income woman, insurance coverage can be the difference between getting the care she needs and having to go without. Restricting Medicaid coverage of abortion forces one in four poor women to carry an unwanted pregnancy to term. Just as ORR blocks abortion access for the young immigrants in its care, the Hyde Amendment blocks abortion for “Janes” struggling to make ends meet.”

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